Bumper card holder



Nov. 18, 1947. w. M. CARLETON E'i'AL 2,431,103 v vBUMPER CARD HOLDER Filed July 30, 1946 RN 5 mw g EET /m WLS T E a P6 and Patented Nov. 18, 1947 BUMPER CARD HOLDER Wayne M. Carleton,

New London, lishing House, of Ohio Shelby, and Frank A. Post, Ohio, assignors to The Fair Pub- New London, Ohio, a corporation Application July 30, 1946, Serial No. 687,136

4 Claims.

This invention relates to automobile bumper cards, and particularly to means for supporting a card for display purposes in a vertical position above a bumper.

Heretofore bumper cards have usually been attached to bumpers by short lengths of rope, or by means of bendable clips that, are carried by the card and are adapted to be bent around the top and bottom edges of the bumper. In each instance, th card is disposed in front of the bumper Where it is apt to be defaced or torn, should the bumper on which it is mounted strike that of another car.

An objection to the use of rope is the time required to attach the card, as well as the unsightly appearanc of the attachment. An objection to the use of clips mounted on the card is the inability to attach the cards to all vehicles because of the wide range of widths of bumpers on th various makes of automobiles. Moreover, the latter type of mounting is objectionable, in that the vibration of the vehicle during use is apt to jar the fasteners loose from the bumper.

An object of the present invention is to make a holder which functions to hold a card in an upright position above a bumper, and which can be detachably connected to any bumper commonly in use at the present time. The invention contemplates a holding device which can be retained as a relatively permanent structure, while still providing for a card that can be detachably connected thereto.

Referring to the drawings, Fig. 1 is a perspective view of part of a motor vehicle having the device of the present invention attached thereto; Fig. 2 is a vertical section through the bumper showing the device of the present invention in side elevation; Fig. 3 is a rear view of one end of the device, and Fig. 4 is a perspective view showing the clip that is used for engaging the top edge of the bumper.

In the drawings, indicates a display card that is adapted to be supported above the bumper ll of an automobile. The holder embodying the present invention comprises a pair of vertically extending members Hi, the upper ends of which are adapted to be detachably connected to the card, and the lower end of which are adapted to be detachably connected to the bumper. In the preferred arrangement each member I5 embodies a strip of metal which is twisted longitudinally so as to be fluted spirally from the bottom to the top thereof. Such construction lends sufiicient rigidity to resist undue bending resulting from motion of the automobile to which the holder is attached. Thecard maybe d'etach'ably connected to the arms l5 by bendable fingers l6 that are shown as being attached in pairs to the arms and as being adapted to be inserted through eyelets I! in the card, and bent backwardly as is illustrated in Fig. 3.,

To hold the upright members upon the bumper, the lower end of each member is rigidly attached, as by welding, to a clip 20-, and the lower end of each clip is curved toprovide a hook-shaped portion 2| that is adapted to engage the bottom edge of the bumper, as is shown in Fig. 2. A second clip 22 is disposed adjacent the top of the bumper and has a hook-shaped portion 3| that is adapted to hook over the top edge of the bumper. The free end of the clip 22 terminates in the tongue around which a spring 25 may be looped with the ends thereof attached to the lower clip at 26 and 2'! respectively. The length of the spring is so chosen that when the spring is in normal retracted position, the top clip is spaced from the bottom clip by a distance less than the width of the bumper, wherefor, it is necessary to expand the spring to hold the top and bottom clips against the top and bottom edges respectively of i the bumper.

draw the lower end of The natural tendency of the extended spring is to hold the top and bottom clips against the bumper and by utilizing a straight portion 35 on the bottom clip with the point of engagement between the fiat portion and the bumper near the lower end of the fiat portion, the spring tends to the member l5 against, the bumper and to hold it in upright position.

An advantage of the present invention is the fact that the display card is held in a position where it presents an attractive appearance and above the bumper where it is not apt to be damaged. The invention has an additional advantage in that the holder may quickly be snapped into position upon a bumper regardless of the width thereof, and in that the card may be readily changed without necessitating destruction of the holder.

We claim:

1. In a holder for a bumper card, two clips, each having a hook-shaped end adapted to engage the top and bottom edges of a bumper respectively, a bendable tension spring looped intermediately around one of the clips and having the ends thereof attached to the other clip, an upright arm rigidly attached to one of the clips and means for attaching one end of a card to said arm.

2. A holder for a bumper card comprising a pair of upright members, means for detachably connecting a display card'to the members adjacent the upper ends thereof, and means for attaching the lower end of each member to a bumper, said last-named means including a clip rigidly attached to the lower end of each member and adapted to engage the bottom edge of the bumper, a sec-nd clip free from the upright and adapted to engage the top edge of the bumper, and spring means connecting the upper and lower clips and operating as the sole means for holding the clips in engagement with the bumper and holding the members in upright position.

3. A holder for a bumper card comprising a pair of vertically extending members, means for detachably connecting the ends of a display card to the upper portions of said members, a plate rigidly attached to the bottom of each member and having the lowermost portion thereof reversely bent and adapted to engage behind the lower edge of a bumper, a pair of freely movable clips independent of the vertically extending members and each having one end thereof reversely bent and adapted to engage behind the upper edge of a bumper, and each having a tongue extending laterally thereof, and two coiled springs, each having the intermediate portion thereof engaging one of said tongues and having the end portions thereof attached to one of the plates on opposite sides of the associated vertically extending member, said springs operating to hold the two clips associated with each vertical member against the bumper solely by spring tension.

4. A holder of the character described comprising a. pair of members, means carried by said members for detachably holding a display card therebetween, and means for holding said members in an upright position upon a bumper, said last-named means including clips for engaging the top and bottom edges respectively of the bumper, one of said clips being attached to the corresponding member and the other free therefrom and springs interconnecting the top and bottom clips and adapted to be flexed laterally to conform to the contour of the bumper.

WAYNE M. CARLETON. FRANK A. POST.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent: 

